Three things: Here's what you will never see Sharks players do on the bench

By Curtis Pashelka, Bay Area News Group

Thursday, March 8, 2018

SAN JOSE — The Sharks might call Silicon Valley home with the latest in technology readily available at their fingertips. But don’t expect San Jose’s players to start swiping through iPads on the bench looking at their last shifts anytime soon.

You may have noticed some Pittsburgh Penguins players thumbing through tablets during their game against the Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday night. It’s a regular occurrence. Phil Kessel and Sidney Crosby, in particular, are ones who likes to come off the ice and take a second look at what just transpired.

During last year’s playoffs, the NHL installed a video coaching system called iBench, where players and coaches can watch replays of what just happened on the ice. It expanded to all 31 teams this season.

The Penguins are huge believers, with some suggesting it may have helped them win the Stanley Cup last June.

Although the Sharks coaches look at all kinds of edited video between periods, Pete DeBoer isn’t a fan of his players looking at tablets as the game is going on.

“I’ve gone down that road before. Everybody’s different. It obviously has worked for them. They’ve won two Cups ,” DeBoer said of the Penguins. “For me, personally, I want my players in the moment. I want them watching the game.

“It becomes habitual, and players want to learn. They want to watch every shift, every situation, and I think you lose your in-game moment. For me. That’s my opinion. Obviously, (Pittsburgh’s) done an unbelievable job with it, so for (Mike Sullivan’s) group, maybe it works. But that’s not something I’m looking to go to.”

Sharks center Eric Fehr never used an iPad while a period was ongoing, but would always take a look after games.

“Just to see what I did and what I can maybe change for next time,” Fehr said. “I’ve never really been a guy that watches in-game stuff. If anything, I’ll watch faceoffs against certain guys. That’s a stationary thing where it’s going to be the same thing reproduced next time, so you can kind of get an advantage from that.

“For me, the play that I missed or the play that I could have had, that’s just the way it is and you’ve got to move on.”

As far as Kessel’s frequent usage of the iPad, Fehr said, “He thinks at a pretty high level on the ice and sees the ice very well. If he feels like somebody got him, he wants to know how and he wants to beat them next time. That’s kind of his idea. Generally he does a pretty good job of it.”

Other things to know for Thursday’s Sharks game against the St. Louis Blues, who still have playoff aspirations despite winning just once in their last nine games.

2. Timo Meier reaches the century mark: Meier, who will be playing his 100th NHL game Thursday, has been one of the Sharks’ most productive players since the calendar turned to 2018.

Meier is second on the Sharks in goal scoring since Jan. 1, scoring 11 times in the last 30 games. He has been especially noticeable the last five games, with three goals, including the game-winner against the Edmonton Oilers on Feb. 27. He also has 19 shots on goal in that time.

“Every week, he’s progressively gotten better,” DeBoer said. “He’s gotten more confident, he’s adding things to his game. When he was playing with Joe (Thornton) and Joe (Pavelski) that they talked to him a lot about different elements of his game, adding pieces to that.

“I think that was probably when I realized that he was taking a step, was when those guys were throwing stuff at him and he was incorporating it. It wasn’t just falling on deaf ears. He had that ability to add things they were looking for in a linemate. That’s probably when it started.

Meier will play on the Sharks’ third line against the Blues with center Chris Tierney and fellow winger Kevin Labanc. But he remembers how valuable his time was on the Sharks’ top line with Thornton and Pavelski.

“Just being around these guys too, you learn a lot. Obviously, Joe Pavelski and Joe Thornton are two of the greatest players and being around these guys and having a chance to play with them, it’s pretty special. But being around them off the ice too, it’s amazing.”

3. Martin Jones gets the nod again: Jones will start in net for the 11th time in 12 games as the Sharks look to at least maintain third place in the Pacific Division. Jones was pulled early in the second period of Sunday’s 4-2 loss to Columbus, although had little or no chance on at least two of the goals.

The question now is, how much will Jones be used down the stretch? The Sharks only play on back to back nights twice over the last month of the season, and remain in a desperate fight just to clinch a spot in the postseason.

Because of an injury and the play of backup Aaron Dell, Jones has played in 46 of the Sharks’ 66 games so far. Last season after 66 games, Jones had been in 54 games, leaving DeBoer to feel that his No. 1 goalie is in a good spot.

“We’re going day-to-day,” DeBoer said when asked if he plans to ride Jones a little harder down the stretch than perhaps past years. “I don’t even think about the number of games or rest.

“We’ve got two capable guys and I think we’ve played them both enough that whether I play him every game the rest of the way or whether we don’t, we’ve set it up so that not’s going to be an issue.”

Starting with his game against Anaheim on Feb. 11 where he stopped 25 of 27 shots in a 3-2 shootout win for the Sharks, Jones is 6-3-1. His .931 save percentage in that time is sixth-best among all NHL goalies who have played at least six games.